How businesses can start on the road to credit Q&A with Jeff Stibel,

Bank credit is like water for small business owners -- necessary to survive. If a banker has a hand on the spigot, Jeff Stibel's company is the one whispering "yes" or "no" when you hold out your cup.

Stibel is chairman and CEO of The Dun & Bradstreet Credibility Corp., which issues the most widely used credit score that bankers use to decide which businesses get their thirsts quenched.

Feeling parched? You're not alone. A summer 2012 survey by the National Small Business Association (NSBA) found that 43 percent of owners who sought outside financing in the past four years were unable to find any willing sources, and 29 percent saw their loans or credit lines reduced.

JEFF STIBEL, CEO,
DUN & BRADSTREET CREDIBILITY CORP.

Jeff Stibel is CEO of Dun & Bradstreet Credibility Corp. -- the company that creates your D&B business credit score. One of the biggest mistakes small business owners make is not being proactive in developing and maintaining a healthy credit score in order to be approved for expansion loans in the future, he says.

That said, plenty of small business owners have beaten the odds. The NSBA survey found that 43 percent of owners had used a revolving line of credit from a bank in the past 12 months.

So how do you join these lucky folks in finding bank financing? Today, it takes a very proactive approach to building a strong credit score for your business, Stibel says.

Many bankers rely on both business owners' personal credit and the D&B score issued by Stibel's firm to measure the business's creditworthiness. D&B typically starts tracking a firm several months after it has formally gone into business and gets what is known as a DUNS number to put it on the firm's radar screen, he says. That results in a D&B score or, in the case of larger firms, a similar measure called PAYDEX score. (See D&B's business score products.)

Unfortunately, Stibel says, many small business owners don't even know there is such a thing as a credit score for a business and therefore lose opportunities to improve their own.

Stibel is no stranger to the realities of running a small business. The serial entrepreneur is the former CEO and president of website and Web service provider Web.com. (The graduate of Brown Univesrity also happens to be a brain scientist).

We spoke with Stibel recently on how small business owners can increase their business's D&B score so they can get credit. 

CreditCards.com: What is the biggest error small business owners make in building the creditworthiness of their business?

Jeff Stibel: The No. 1 mistake is not being proactive. We talk to more than 10,000 businesses a week. So many of them say, "I just went to my bank. I need a loan to expand my business. They said they couldn't give me one because of my D&B score. Why is that?" At that point, it's largely too late. We'll try to work with the owner and call the bank -- but we'll be starting from scratch and they might miss an opportunity [to get a loan].

CreditCards.com: How do banks actually use a business's credit score?

Jeff Stibel: Banks almost universally rely on your PAYDEX score and D&B Score when they are checking your business credit file. Most small businesses don't have enough of a file. If the file isn't complete and there isn't enough credit history, they will go back to your personal credit as well.

It is highly dependent on the situation and the case. For large businesses, banks almost universally rely on the PAYDEX score. For the smallest, newest businesses, they almost always rely on personal credit. It's the ones in the middle -- the ones that have been around a year or two -- where the business credit file is so important. It is an opportunity to get away from a personal guarantee and get real business credit.

CreditCards.com: Is there a minimum size for businesses to get a D&B score? Can a one-person business get one?

Jeff Stibel: When we give people a DUNS number -- effectively a Social Security number for their business -- we give that out to all businesses. We give it out for free when a business starts.

Businesses can work directly with us [to influence their score]. If you own a pizza shop in Des Moines and do business with a tomato sauce provider in Upstate New York, you can let us know.

CreditCards.com: How do you come up with a business's credit score?

Jeff Stibel: We need to see a certain amount of information and activity. The way that happens is through trade. If you open a business bank account, it is very likely that your bank partners with us. If you open a business credit card, we will be able to track those transactions. If you partner with vendors in the Fortune 500, many will report back on whether you are an early payer, pay on time or are a late payer.

Businesses can work directly with us [to influence their score]. If you own a pizza shop in Des Moines and do business with a tomato sauce provider in Upstate New York, you can let us know. We'll independently verify that, and use it as a trade reference that will affect your credit. If you're buying ink cartridges for your business with Hewlett-Packard or Staples, we could reach out to them and ask how much business you are doing with them, are you paying on time and are you a good partner?

CreditCards.com: If I own a business, how can I check my own D&B score?

Jeff Stibel: A one-off report is as low as $50. Credit monitoring is $500 a year.

CreditCards.com: What can business owners do to improve their firms' credit scores?

Jeff Stibel: They can give us trade references, disclose revenues in a confidential way and give us information about the number of years in business and the number of employees. This information is self-reported.

CreditCards.com: There are other companies springing up offering their own credit scoring systems for businesses as well. What industry trends do you see when it comes to evaluating businesses?

Jeff Stibel: The biggest shift is from credit to credibility.  It's not just about quantitative scores. It's about the qualitative. Is this a good person to do business with? If you look back at the financial crisis of the past four years, we got carried away with quantitative analysis and didn't pay enough attention to qualitative analysis -- the whites of the eyes of the business owner.

Our data sources have to be broader than trade activities. We are working with Twitter, Facebook, foursquare and LinkedIn to get access to all kinds of unique information. What are people tweeting about a business? Are there positive reviews on Yelp? That gives us a crowdsourced angle to credibility.

CreditCards.com: What if people post false reviews on a social media site?

Jeff Stibel: We won't just take reviews from any one source. We'll take them from everywhere. We'll do a distributed weighted average. It becomes incredibly difficult to game the system.

Business Credit 101

finally took the time considering all of the interest in the forums about establishing and building business credit

Establish the Business

1. NAME YOUR COMPANY - The first step in this process is to select a company name. Be sure you pick one that has not been selected by another company in your state, You can check with you Secretary of State and once that is done you can move onto the next step.

2. INCORPORATE YOUR COMPANY - Now that you have selected your business name, you are going to need to establish your corporation with the state of your choosing. To do this, you can go to "Free Registered Agent". which is owned by InCorp Services. They will give you registered agent services free for the first year. They also only charge a nominal fee plus your states filing fees to incorporate your business.

3. OBTAIN AN EIN - Once you have incorporated your business you will need to obtain a Federal Employer Identification Number. You can file form SS-4 online at the Internal Revenue Service website.

http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=102767,00.html

Once you have completed this form you will obtain your EIN in a matter of seconds. Be sure to print it out and write it down because they do not send you an email confirmation. This is the number that you will need in order to apply for credit under your business name without a personal guarantee.

4. ESTABLISH A LOCATION - So now you have your EIN and are incorporated. Your business needs to have a physical location that is not your home address. The UPS store will not work because most creditors have them flagged. An alternative is to get a virtual office in your home town. Most of these will supply you with a lease agreement (sometimes needed to get credit), license hanging services, your name on a wall plaque at the location, and mail forwarding services. You should be able to find these services bundled for about $100 per month. In addition, some of these places will even allow you small usage of the buildings conference room and offices for an additional fee. This is great if you just need a completely quiet place to work for a few hours or if you need to sign a contract or conduct a meeting.

5. ESTABLISH PHONE SERVICE - Now that you have a physical location for your business, you will need to establish a utility bill using your newly received EIN and business address. There are many choices for this step of the process.

a) Contact your local telephone companies business sales department and request what they call a Remote Call Forwarding Number. This is a number that the phone company manages at their and is forwarded to a number of your choosing. They will usually charge a setup fee and $10 to $15 per month. Make sure you give them the address of the office that you set up and the EIN number. Also make sure that they will list you in the 411 directory under your address, not theirs.

b) Another method is to get an 800 number and have it forwarded to a number of your choosing. You can then utilize "List Yourself" to add yourself to your local 411. However, this is not recommended because there is still no free way (that I know of) to list yourself in the national 411 directories.

c) For those of you that need a true business line, you can subscribe to the Vonage Small
Business Premium service (or any other small business VOIP service) and for $49.99 per month and they will list your business in both your local and national 411 directories.

6. ESTABLISH A CHECKING ACCOUNT - Once you have all of that in order, you can now open your corporate checking account. Many banks only require $100 to open the account, 2 forms of identification, and your Articles of Incorporation.

7. OBTAIN A D-U-N-S NUMBER - Now you need to go to Dun & Bradstreet and obtain a D-U-N-S
Number. In the two more years of buidling business credit I have noted one ever constant factor.... Dun & Bradstreet is the leading cause of headaches for businesses trying to build a credit file.  New business owners are especially prone to the sales pitches thrown by commission hungry DUNS sales reps. Just about every new business owner tends to ask a question about DUNS or ends up complaining about them.

The front lines of D&B are covered by the DUNS sales representatives. More often than not if you are trying to get a DUNS number from them it starts the vicious cycle of how worthless simply having the number will be and how you "need" to buy CreditBuilder or another product to have a full rated file. The plain and simple fact is, you do NOT need to buy anything from DUNS to end up with a fully rated file! DUNS sales reps will of course try and tell you otherwise in hopes of making you pay.

Unlike personal credit CRAs, DUNS is not governed by the FCRA. They are a loose canon existing within a realm of pure gray area when it comes to regulation. Simply put, they can screw you and get away with it if your not careful.First thing that has often been misunderstood is that you need to get a DUNS number in order to have a file. Or that you need to contact DUNS to open a file or get a number. This is misinformation.

A DUNS number can and is automatically created by one of the following:

a) When your first NET30 account reports the tradeline the DUNS system will automatically create your number and file.

b) If you are incorporated, the Secretary of State in your state will often automatically report your corporation's existence as it reports quarterly or semi-annually to DUNS.

I am unsure if every states SOS office in fact does this. Many I know do. The best bet for auto creation is to simply open some starter NET30 Internet based office suppliers (see below). Be sure and use the account and then promptly pay the invoice you get. Most of these places will open you a NET30 terms account with as little as a 411 phone listing for your company. There are enough of these vendors out there to use if one or the other gives you grief insisting they need to see a credit file. Some of these vendors may ask you to place an initial prepaid order. No biggie. Get it out of the way and move on to having a NET30 terms account. Many will open you one from the start no questions asked.

If you need a DUNS number immediately it can often be obtained from the government contracts site:

http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform/pages/CCRSearch.jsp

Though it's just as easy to let it auto create. The thing you MUST be is PATIENT! It's not going to all happen in a day or even a week. If you miss out on the vendors reporting cycle it may take a number of weeks for the NET30 to report. But given your alternative of calling the main DUNS numbers and getting grief from the commission hungry reps and possibly getting your file flagged by a rep who is going to try to hamstring you or otherwise extort services from you, it would be wise to just let it auto create.

Again, you DO NOT need to call DUNS to get a number or file. Just like Experian business files, DUNS will auto create with the SOS or first tradeline data.

When you do a search on DUNS for your business and it finally shows up, then you want to get eupdate access. In order to access your eupdate report you need two things, your DUNS number and an eupdate password. The easiest way to accomplish this is to click your business when it shows up in a search. It will give you several different type reports you can buy on the company. Select the cheap $9.99 basic report. All you want is the DUNS number here. Buying more expensive reports will likely not yield any other info given how new your company is. Don't waste your money. Spend the $9.99. Buy the report. You will then get to see your DUNS number.

Ok, go to eupdate....

https://eupdate.dnb.com/ (keep in mind that the eupdate site is frequently down for whatever reason)

Bookmark this page. But do not do anything yet cause chances are if you fill out the sign up info at this point your just gonna get an error page saying your entered info doesn't match what's on file. The real problem actually is that your report doesn't have all the info on file for the eupdate system to match against.

Instead, call 1-866-834-4699. This is the entity department. Tell them your DUNS number and that you are having an issue getting your eupdate password. They will either verify company info with you right then and there or they will take your company and phone number and put you on the callback list for their department. If they tell you the rep will call you, they will and be sure to answer the phone when you see them calling (this department is not the sales department) they will run down the company info asking about biz stats and owners, etc. They will probably ask for financials to round out your report. All this really means is they want a copy of a balance sheet. If you don't do them typically, go on Google and find a balance sheet template and fill it out. They will give you a fax number to send it to.

After they take your info you need to let the new info register into their system. This may take a day or two. At this point if they haven't already emailed you an eupdate password, the info that will allow the system to send you one should now be on their system and you can go up to the aforementioned eupdate link and sign up. They should simply send you one within a day or two after taking all your info.

When you talk to the rep at the above number, or the one that calls you back, be sure to get their direct number and extension as to follow up should they put an error in your file like an incorrectly spelled name or phone number. When you get your eupdate password log in. Do not choose the edit profile option. Just choose the one that lets you see the report. Any time you hit the edit button, DUNS keeps a running count and if you go into edit mode too much they will flag your file. You can get updates done easier when dealing with this department anyway. Most things you enter into eupdate will get you a verification call from DUNS anyway, so just don't screw with the edit section.

Also don't look at your eupdate every day. Updates are typically only done once a week and visible on Sundays anyway. So look on Sunday.

Other helpful hints....

- Do NOT go on app sprees. Inquiries set off alarms with DUNS and gets your file sent to an early fraud department which often results in your file being frozen with all reporting data and ratings removed.

- There is NO reason to call the main DUNS numbers or even deal with the sales team. There is not even any good reason to go get your DUNS number as to simply letting it auto create. I know some folks need it for Government bidding, but plan it out a little ahead of time and get the number by auto creation and you will have taken a serious step at avoiding the front line sales people that is the main reason for most peoples complaints.

- There are departments within DUNS who are not on commission and will never try to sell you a thing.

You just need to go in the back door.

Establishing your Business Credit

1. ESTABLISH YOUR INITIAL ACCOUNTS - Once you have everything that is required to apply for credit you can go about establishing your initial accounts, Before you go applying everywhere think again. This is a slow process and your business credit might be flagged or even blocked if you apply to too many places at once, I recommend that you start out with 6 to 8 companies on NET30 terms. Below is a list of companies that offer NET30 Terms. Purchase a small initial order from each of these companies that approved you for NET30. Pay your invoice off well before its due date as that is how the D&B Paydex Score is calculated.

- Fedex\Kinkos
- Quill
- ULine
- Nebs
- Reliable
- Office Depot
- Gemplers
- Interstate Battery

2. WHAT IS A PAYDEX SCORE - A Paydex score is what D&B uses to tell potential creditors about your payment history and worthiness. It scales from a range from 0 to 100, with 100 being the best possible score. You are going to want to keep your Paydex score at or above 80. Paydex score are broken down as follows:

100 - Pays before invoice is generated
90 - Pays during discount period
80 - Pays when invoice is due
70 - Pays 15 days beyond terms
60 - Pays 22 days beyond terms
50 - Pays 30 days beyond terms
40 - Pays 60 days bevond terms
20 - Pays 90 days beyond terms
UN - Unavailable

3. WAIT FOR PAYDEX SCORE - In order to receive a Paydex score, you will need to have five tradelines reporting to D&B. Once you have five reporting you will be assigned your Paydex score. Now that you have this Paydex score you can move on to establishing revolving accounts, you can move on to Building Your Business Credit.

4. WHILE YOU WAIT -  While you are waiting for your Paydex score to come through, you should also be able to open a revolving charge account at Staples without having your Paydex score. Most people get approved for $750 right off the bat. You will need to fax them in a copy of your phone bill however or at the minimum have your company listed in the 411.

5. GETTING A CELL PHONE - If you need cellular service for your business you should use you
business name and EIN to obtain a cellular phone, Most carriers will approve you for service without any deposits.

Building Your Business Credit

1. ESTABLISH MORE TRADE LINES - Now that you have your Paydex score you are going to want to begin applying to companies for revolving credit accounts. Remember, you DO NOT want to go on application sprees. You should start by applying to just a couple of companies.

2. CONTINUE YOUR BUILDING - Always wait a few weeks in between applying for more trade lines, and only do one or two at a time. Again it is important to stress that you should NEVER go on application sprees. This affects your business credit just as bad as if you were to do it with your personal credit.

3. REVOLVING CREDIT COMPANIES - Here is a list of companies that offer credit on revolving terms. Please remember that if they ask you for a personal guarantee to tell them you do not want to give it. Most times the company will just process the application without it.

- Staples
- Frys
- Walmart
- Lowes
- Home Depot
- Citi PP
- Dell

4. GAS CARDS - Here is a list of gas cards that you can get without a personal guarantee as well. These will come in handy when you are on the road for business.

- Conoco 76
- Shell
- Exxon/Mobile
- Chevron
- Sunoco

Good luck!

How to increase social media engagement with branded with images

How to Increase Social Media Engagement with Branded Images

Word on the street is that people are more drawn to visual content. Sooooo, of course it’s a great idea to share a slew of awesome images and funny videos to all your social platforms. People will be sure to notice you then! Right…right?

Not so fast, my friends. I mean, you would sure get noticed, but most likely as the obnoxious person who gets hidden from people’s news feeds.

While several studies prove that visual content is more engaging, you still need to create and share the right  visual content.

If you haven’t heard this one enough, here it is again…share content relevant to your audience.

Here are four ways to use custom, branded images to engage your audience and grow your brand awareness.

1. Use Quotes that Trigger an Emotional Response

When we see a video, image, or saying that makes us laugh, smile or even cry, we are driven to share. We enjoy the warm feeling in our chest created by such content and want to give others the opportunity to experience the same feeling.

If we are successful in passing happiness on, our own will continue to grow. And hey, who doesn’t want to feel happy?

The findings of astudy conducted by the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicineprove even more interesting. Not only do emotions have the ability to spread across social media, but also positivity permeates better than negativity.

We saw this in the social media campaign that Lab3 managed for Give Day Tampa Bay, a 24-hour day of giving to various charities in Tampa Bay. The enthusiasm leading up to the event was overwhelming and contagious.

I was tasked with creating branded images for the Facebook page that encouraged people to participate in this giving extravaganza. And boy did they get a lot of attention.

Below is an example of one of the images I created for the campaign. The quote is short and sweet but carries so much meaning.

The image got 57 Likes, which is great, but what was amazing was it got almost as many (56) Shares! That’s huge.

People are telling us that they like what Give Day Tampa Bay is sharing so much that they want to share it with their friends, spread the word.

The image carries even more weight for the campaign by including visual branding and a unique hash tag. This way, no matter where people find this post, they can connect it back to Give Day Tampa Bay.

2. Use Images of People (Shiny Happy People)

People love to see images of other people. Why? Being part of the same species and all, we can easily relate to what others are doing or how they are feeling.

The first characteristic we typically notice about another person is their face. Therefore, this is how we best identify each other.

As an extension of my previous topic, the face is also connected with emotion. In 1964, following the hypotheses of Charles Darwin, Silvan“Tompkins conducted the first study demonstrating that facial expressions were reliably associated with certain emotional states.”

The emotions translated through the face are just as contagious, if not more, than feel good sayings. When I see a picture of someone smiling, I find myself smiling right back. Don’t you?

Another reason pictures of people perform well on social media is the human desire to be part of a community. We feel a stronger connection with a business or personality when we can see the person behind it.

For Lab3 Marketing’s client Bay Stage Live, a family owned and operated entertainment technologies business, I create custom birthday and work anniversary images.

Their audience often feels naturally compelled to engage with these posts when they see a familiar face, especially when it’s cause for celebration.

Similar to how I smile when I see a picture of a smiling person, I want to have fun when I see others having fun. I want to get in on the action! And so does Bay Stage Live’s audience.

3. Create Announcements of Local Events

If you own a company that relies on local business, then you want to attract the local audience. A great way of doing this is to share news and events happening in your area.

Creating a unique, branded image to announce an event helps contribute new content for the event as well as promote your business.

This works especially well for Lab3’s client Hilton Tampa Downtown. It’s an ideal location for people to stay during big events happening in Tampa.

One of the many events that we have promoted using branded images is Gasparilla. The organic reach proved successful because the image is relevant to our client’s audience. 

Even though the paid reach was a whopping 32x  more than organic, more than 40% of the engagement was from the organic reach!

Sharing information about local events also adds value to your business by saying, “I know and care about what’s going on in my community.”

4. Create Images That Ask Questions

Something else people love is to share their opinion.

Social media marketers often talk about prompting people to do just that by asking questions in a post or comment. But, what about posing your question right in the image?

For Lab3’s client Agape Diamonds, I created images that show three different styles of rings with the simple question, “which one do you like best?” The comments came rolling in. The post below got incredible engagement before the client even added paid reach!

Don’t be discouraged if your post doesn’t get great engagement the first time. If it does, that’s fantastic. It probably means that your audience is already paying attention.

Sometimes, however, it takes a little more time for people to catch on to these new opinion polls you are creating. Keep at it and the number of comments will increase with each effort.

Wrapping Up

Basic marketing techniques involve people seeing and interacting with your logo, content and product. The more exposure people have with your brand, the more it will be at the front of their minds when they are in need of your product or service.

Also, by sharing images of happy employees, motivating quotes and local events, you are building a positive reputation with your audience. You are sending messages about your work environment and values.

If this sounds like a lot of work, don’t get overwhelmed. Start by choosing one technique that fits your brand and give it a shot. Play around with different image styles and calls to action to find out what resonates with your audience

Blogging and guest blogging

Blogging and guest blogging for SEO

In this part of our SEO marketing course I talk about blogging and guest blogging for SEO. Blogging on your own blog, and guest blogging on another blog are two quite different strategies. Blogging on your own blog is almost always a good idea because it helps you get more traffic and boosts your site's overall SEO. Guest blogging strategy, on the other hand, is something that is now rarely a good idea. Guest blogging used to be popular a few years ago, but Google has clamped down on it in recent years because people were abusing it, and only guest blogging to get links for SEO (sometimes called backlinks).

Setting the title and description meta tags

setting the title and description meta tags

The title and description meta tags are very important for Google SEO (search engine optimization), and in this part of the course I explain how to write your title and description meta tags in order to help you get the most search traffic or at least position you as well as possible to get the traffic.

Some people ask about the keywords meta tag. As far as Google search is concerned, the keywords meta tag isn't relevant anymore, but the title and description meta tags are still very relevant, and you should pay very close attention to them, and how well you write them, and how well you use the keywords that are relevant for your website in the title and description meta tags.

SEO BASICS AND FUNDAMENTALS

SEO basics and fundamentals

SEO (search engine optimization) is a topic to which it is hard to give an introduction because SEO has grown to be many different things to many different people. And really, where do you start to explain SEO? At the heart of it, of course, the practice of SEO is your practice as a marketer to position your website or product pages to get as much search traffic as possible. Many people associate SEO with Google search because Google is the biggest player in search. But the truth is that people search for things everywhere on the web. For example, people search mobile app stores for apps, they search Amazon, eBay or Etsy for products, they search Yelp for local businesses, and they search iTunes for music and podcasts. All that is SEO, and in this course you will learn how to capture all of that traffic.

ARE YOU READY FOR NEXT GEN E-MAIL MARKETING?

E-mail marketing is changing and businesses need to understand the importance of shedding previously accepted e=mail tactics  in favor of new ones. Some of the content marketers might say “e-mail marketing is dead” but this is just not true! E-mail marketing has been one of the highest ROI generating channels and does the best job when it comes to generating conversions So, what is included in the next generation e-mail marketing strategy? I will cover this up in 5 major points given below:

1. Start Email Marketing Segmentation: The More You Personalize, the Higher Your ROI

As per the Lyris annual email optimizer report, 39% of businesses witnessed an increase in e-mail open rates when they segmented their overall email marketing strategy. The best way to target subscribers is to send them emails based on their behavior. Moreover, in a recent study, MailChimp presented some global stats that proved that segmented campaigns performed markedly better as compared to the non-segmented campaigns:

Readers favor personalized e-mails and these tend to generate a higher ROI. Building a relationship with the customer is the first rule of successful e-mail marketing. Businesses can have a set of templates and it can determine which template is best suited for which audience depending on the customer data and customer behavior. Cohort Analysis can be a great help in this regard. The below considerations are helpful when sending out personalized emails:

Customer satisfaction survey dataDemographic and geographic dataFrequency of purchaseSource of acquisitionCustomer lifetime valueCustomer spendingClickthrough rate on offers

Implementing the above recommendations can improve email open rates and conversions. People love to be treated independently rather than as a group and email personalization is the first step to cater to this need of your customer.

2. Use Data Markup and Create Clear CTA Buttons: The Age of Semantics

Did you know that there are several different types of email data markup formats that are supported by Gmail? You must have seen your favorite online e-commerce store sending you emails that contains a direct link to track package source right in the subject of the e-mail. These are direct call to actions that are been increasingly used by e-commerce brands to increase user engagement. An example can be seen below where Amazon, BaseCamp, BillGuard etc are sending direct call to actions within emails in order to initiate faster user interactions:

So, next time you send out emails to your subscribers, include actions that will enable the users to interact with your product or service right inside Gmail and other inboxes. The following 4 types of actions are available in Gmail:

One Click Action: Any expected action by the user that can be completed by just one click. For example, accepting a friendship request or adding music recommendations to the queue.RSVP Action: This can be used for responding to an event invitation from inside the inbox.Review Action: As the name suggests itself, this action is used for movie, restaurants, products or other reviews.Go-to Action: If the user needs to perform a series of actions to complete a conversion (whether primary or secondary) then this type of action is used. For example, checking in to an airline website to reserve a seat.

For more help related to e-mail schemas, please visit this tutorial by Google.

Once you have added all the actions and markups, you can simply check it before sending it out to the users using the E-mail Markup Tester from Google.

3. Simplify Your Email Design and Make It Mobile-Friendly

Responsive design is complex but when it comes to e-mail, it’s a bit easier. Many users check e-mails on their smartphones so when it comes to conversions, responsive design rocks!

Here are some recommended specifications that can do wonders:

Set e-mail width at a maximum of 600 to 650 pixels.A single-column layout is preferred with large fonts for easier visibility.Use small size images, preferably jpegs.If you are using videos, use HTML 5 and autoplay feature.Use only optimized images with proper alt text.Highlight the CTA element and make sure customers can easily click them on a mobile device.

4. Don’t Forget to Test Your E-mails and Improve Consistently

In order to maximize the results of your daily e-mail blast, you should seriously consider testing your e-mails. Here are some easy ways to get started:

Test the subject line of your e-mail. Subject lines can be simple, controversial, mysterious, personalized, question based, promising, teaser, seasonal and more.Test the content of the main body. Just try to focus on one element at a time and proceed with the next one only when you have accurate results of the first test.Take the litmus test for emails that lets you preview your campaigns across 40+ real email clients and devices in minutes.Track the traffic to lead conversion rates when you run specific e-mail campaigns.Make sure to test the wording of the CTA, the placement and the style.Control the time of day and day of the week. You are sure to get some exciting numbers here.Test the font formatting, colors and images.

5. Make Use of Tools That Just Make Your Email Marketing Campaign Easy!

There are some awesome tools available in the market that makes your e-mail marketing look so easy. Here are some of the popular ones that you must seriously consider:

New E-mail Test From PutsMail – It lets you send your raw email HTML design to any email address for design testing and debugging.E-mail Spam Checker – Contactology offers a great tool that allows you to check the “Message Quality Score” or MQS that helps to determine message quality and test email deliverability on a scale from 0 (bad) to 100 (excellent).HTML to Text E-mail Converter from MailChimp – This is a handy tool that lets you automatically create a text version of your HTML email.Untorch Viral Marketing Tool for E-mail Sign Ups – It helps you create an email capture form and prompts people to share your product with their friends. Apart from keeping a track of referrals, it also allows you to send email follow ups for greater audience capture.

Establishing trust and rapport with your targeted audience is really important in order to have a long term success. The above five strategies can go a long way in adding that “human component” in emails that most of the marketers fail to add in their campaigns. Do you know about any other strategies that you are currently using to diversify and segment your current email marketing strategy? Please let me know in the comments below.

Google: HTTPS Acts As A Dealbreaker In A Google Ranking Tie

The Google HTTPS ranking algorithm, which launched some time ago, hasn't proven to many webmasters and SEOs as being all that significant. With that being said, one webmaster asked Google's Gary Illyes about that on Twitter.

Gary Illyes responded on Twitter saying it acts as a dealbreaker when two sites are in a tie for the same number one ranking.

Gary Illyes wrote in response to being asked how much does HTTPS play a role in Google's rankings, it is "more like a dealbreaker. All other signals being more or less equal, it gives a page the edge needed to top the other result."

Here is the tweet:

Gary said this before, as covered byJennifer Slegg out of the SMX Sydney coverage.

Duplicate content

Duplicate content

This is content that is duplicated on other Web pages and/or other sites. If you have duplicate content on your website for a legitimate reason, you can use robot.txt to direct Search Engines not to index those Web pages.

Doorway page

Doorway page

A doorway page is a black hat SEO strategy whereby a page is created on a website that has no useful content and exists only to redirect visitors to another area of the site. This is not be confused with a targeted landing page which is a white hat SEO technique.

DOFOLLOW LINK

Dofollow link

A standard link which hasn’t been Nofollowed. This type of link will pass PageRank or link equity or link juice to another website or page on a website.

DMOZ

DMOZ

Also known as The Open Directory Project. DMOZ is a free, human, edited directory run by volunteers. A listing is considered beneficial for SEO, but getting listed can be a real challenge.

Crawl

Crawl

When a Search Engine spider visits your site they are said to “crawl” your site. This is the process of collecting data and returning it to the Search Engine. The more frequently you update your site, the more spiders are encouraged to visit and index new pages.

Conversation

Conversion

Conversion in SEO is to look at the keywords which are converting to “contact us”, to making a purchase, to subscribing. Assigning dollar values or goal completions in Google Analytics will assist in determining the conversions. Don’t ignore click stream conversions – this information can prove valuable

Content

Content

Web content is the visual part of the user experience when looking at a website. It can include text, images, sounds, video and more. Web content is still one of the most important SEO tools with text content really valuable in search engine terms

CMS Content management system

CMS

The term CMS stands for Content Management System. It is basically web based computer software that allows publishing of content online. The content can be edited and modified by the administrator. CMS have been designed to make it easier for a non-techincal user to make changes to their web based content.

Cloaking

Cloaking

Cloaking is a technique used in search engine optimisation where the content put forward to the search engine is actually a different version shown to the web user. It is considered a deceptive pratcie (black hat SEO) and could result in the site being banned or penalised.

Citation

Citation

Citations or directory listings are defined as “mentions” of your business name and address on other webpages. The goal of citations are to let the Search Engines know that your site is out there and to increase the number of inbound links pointing back to your site. While the importance of citations/directory listings have decreased over time, they are still an important part of your over-all SEO process and can serve as valuable links and ‘votes’ for your website.

Call to action

Call to action

A call-to-action is the copy or text on a web page or advertisment that encourages the user to complete an action. Anything from asking a user to sign up for your newsletter to asking them to give you a call is considered a call-to-action. This is, arguably, the most critical point of advertising because it is the point that will determine if a user leaves your page or converts into a customer. Each action is determined by the individual website and can come in many different forms depending on the overall goals of the webmaster.

Cache

Cache

In SEO terms, this refers to the way Search Engines “memorise” or “take a picture” of web pages, allowing you to quickly navigate to the cached version of a page. If a webpage is in your cache then the next time you go to open the page, you are actually opening it from your computer’s last memory of you visiting that page. This help saves time and can save your time when opening a page. Having said that, it is also importantly to frequently empty your cache so as to not overwhelm your computer.

Bounce rate

Bounce rate

“A bounce rate is the percentage at which people exit a website after only viewing one page. This, in terms, means that the landing page through which a person entered the site was not what the person was searching for and therefore ‘bounced’ off the page. This metric is used to measure visit quality – a high bounce rate
generally indicates that site entrance pages aren’t relevant to your visitors. While there are several indications that could result in an increased bounce rate, it is generally important to have as low of a bounce rate as possible.”

Blogs

Blogs

A company blog is an important part of an SEO strategy. As well as being able to add fresh, updated copy to a website, you can create blog articles that target relevant keywords for your website. A blog also allows a company to have an interactive forum with their consumers, something that can’t be duplicated on a static web page. Blogs have also become increasingly popular as social networks serve as an easy avenue for blog articles to be shared and discussed.

Black Hat SEO

Black hat SEO

Black Hat SEO is the use of unethical web tactics to improve a website’s presence on the Search Engines. While many of these tactics are simply ‘old school’ SEO practices, they have long since been banned for ethical reasons as it’s seen as ‘cheating.’ While many black hat tactics may give you an initial boost in rankings, penalties will very soon follow and could even cause your domain to become blacklisted by the Search Engines. Black Hat tactics can be done both on-site and off and you should make sure that you understand the ins and outs of any SEO program being implemented for your website.

Bing

Bing

Bing is the self advertised ‘decision engine’ powered by Microsoft and serves as Google’s closest competitor in the Search Engine world. Launching in June 2009, Bing has continued to promise to deliver the most relevant search results to it’s users. While it’s still lagging in many parts of the world, it has increasinly gained in popularity in the U.S. with its ‘Bing It On Challenge.’ Also in 2009, Bing struck a 10 year deal with Yahoo! to power all of it’s search engines and search partners which is why you often see very similar results from the two search engines.

Bad link neighborhood

Bad link neighborhood

This is a group of non-related sites all linked together in an attempt to strengthen a website’s link profile or build PageRank. The links often include pharmacy, porn sites, casinos, and so on. These are often created with link farms or low quality directories and can easily and quickly get your site penalised or blacklisted.

Back links

Backlinks (or Back Links)

Backlinks, or inbound links, are incoming links from other websites who have mentioned your company or used your company as a source of authority. Building a strong link profile consists of obtaining inbound links from credible and relevant sources who will boost your quality score and/or PageRank. Backlinking is often referred to as the ‘backbone of SEO’ as each backlink serves as a ‘vote’ for your site and, in turn, works to increase your sites visibility on the SERPs.

Auto-generated pages

Auto-generated pages

Auto generated pages are created using a script or computer program to generate thousands of irrelavent and keyword stuffed pages that have no value to the human reader. These auto generated pages are often used as a Black Hat SEO tactic to quickly increase a client’s web traffic by using the auto generated page as a doorway which is then redirected to the actual website. Using a tactic such as this can result in heavy penalties from the search engines and can often leave you blacklisted from the Search Engines.

Anchor text

Anchor text

An anchor text refers to the clickable (hyperlinked) portion of text within a webpage. The words used as the anchor text are generally a relevant keyword phrase to whatever page they are being linked to. Anchor text has also become a valid technique for inbound marketing in an effort to raise the relevance of a webpage for a certain keyword phrase. Anchor texts are also used internally within a website to help a user navigate from one page to the next with ease.

Alt tags

Alt tags

An image alt tag or HTML alternative text tag is the text used to describe an image within a website. These tags are used for both the visually impaired as well as serves as a way for the Search Engines to “read” your image. The proper use of this tag is important and should use relevant keywords to accurately describe each image on your website.

Algorithm

Algorithm

A Search Engine algorithm is a set of rules or formula created by each individual Search Engine to determine relevance and value of each web page. The algorithms are in constant update to ensure that the most relevant web pages are being displayed for each search query. While the exact formula for each Search Engines algorithm is safely guarded, there are a few factors that websites can consistenly expect the algorithms to test; accuracy, relevance, importance and popularity.

404 status code

404 status code

A 404 status code is a standard HTTP response code indicating that a page cannot be found or it’s a ‘dead link’. There can be several reasons for this code to appear. The most common are that the page has been moved, the user typed in the wrong URL or it is simply a dead link. It is also quite common to create a custom 404 error page on each website that allows the user to navigate to the correct page either by listing a sitemap or giving the option to search within the domain for the correct page.

302 status code

302 status code

A 302 status code is another way of URL redirection but unlike a 301 redirect, a 302 is only a temporary redirect and is often seen as spammy. There is little reason to use a 302 redirect and you must be aware that many search engines automatically see a 302 redirect as spam.

301 status code

301 status  code

A 301 status code or a 301 redirect is referring to a URL redirection and has been permanently moved. This often happens when a new domain name has been acquired for a site or if two web pages are now merged as one. A 301 status code is seen as the most search engine friendly redirection available in today’s SEO world.